User:Habap/Raff

From Ridgway's Paratroopers by Clay Blair

pg 194-195 "A new candidate for parachute regimental commander appeared on the scene one day: Edson Raff, former commander of the independent 509th battalion, now a full colonel and, thanks in part to his own book We Jumped to Fight, a paratrooper celeberity.

"Since departing North Africa, Raff had had a hard time finding a niche that suited him. Previously, in the States, both Ridgway and Lee had declined to take Raff as a regimental commander, but Lee had agreed to use him as an "advance man" to find billeting for the 101st Division in England. Thereafter, Raff had gravitated to an airborne planning job on Omar Bradley's staff in London. Raff, dissatisfied in his staff position, even volunteered to go into Normandy as a 'spare' colonel in a regular infantry division. Hearing this, Bradley resolved the problem by literally forcing Raff on Ridgway. (footnoted by Blair "Ltr. Raff to author 7/17/84, enclosing part of a draft of a book ms (hereafter, Raff ms).")

"When Raff reported to the 82nd Division, he met a frosty reception. Ridgway, Raff recalled, 'had no use for me at all.' For his part, Raff found Ridgway to be a 'conceited, self-centered, narcissistic man' and a 'disgrace to the airborne,' whom Raff 'could never loyally serve.' He thought Ridgway's staff were amateurs (peacetime 'schoolteachers and reserve officers') and 'sycophants who loved to praise Ridgway.'

"Raff still hungered for a regimental command and hoped he might get the 505, since he was senior to Bill Ekman. But Ridgway would not then give Raff the 505 or any other regiment. Instead, he assigned Raff a less glamorous (for a famous airborne colonel) D-day task. Raff would command a special sea-landed armored 'task force' composed of 21 Sherman medium tanks, two armored cars and 90 gliderists from the 325. This task force would land at Utah Beach and 'break through' overland to the 82nd Division, to provide it with added firepower."

From the after-action report for the 82nd, as published on http://www.6juin1944.com/assaut/aeropus/en_page.php?page=after

D-Day: "At 2100 hours 100 gliders landed with artillery, engineers, and special troops. Seaborne elements set sail at 0645 from BRISTOL except for a task force consisting of [b]Company C, 746th Tank Battalion; the 1st Platoon, Troop B, 4th Cavalry Squadron; and elements company F, 3d Battalion (originally 2d Battalion, 401st Glider Infantry), 325th Glider Infantry. This task force landed on Utah Red Beach at 1400 hours and proceeded inland with the mission of contacting the Division near STE. MERE EGLISE.[/b]"

"Company F, 3d Battalion, supporting Company C, 746th Tank Battalion, landed on Utah Red Beach at 1400, de-waterproofed vehicles and moved inland at 1600 to make contact with the Division. Heavy artillery, mortar and small arms fire held up this task force at crossroads 363933. Two tanks were knocked out. The remainder of the regiment prepared to take off from airports in England."

D+1 "Company F, 3d Battalion in support of Company C, 746th Tank Battalion, and the 1st Platoon, Troop B, 4th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, assisted the 8th Infantry in its attack towards STE. MERE EGLISE from the west at 0630 hours and made contact with gliderborne elements of the 325th by 0900. The 325th's regimental strength at the close of the day was approximately 85 per cent."